The Manicures You Need to See From New York Fashion Week

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“I have a big surprise for you,” Jin Soon, fashion’s favorite manicurist, says backstage at Derek Lam’s show, “it’s nude!” Indeed, the big nail story for fall is nude, but it does come in different shapes and sizes.

At Reed Krakoff, lead manicurist Michelle Saunders painted Essie’s Matte Top Coat ($8) over the brand’s Mademoiselle ($8) for a buffed look. At Marchesa, Soon used Marchesa x Revlon’s ($5) Grey Suede (the title’s deceiving) to elongate the fingers. At Altuzarra, Saunders created a sheer French manicure, while at Donna Karan, Milly, and Helmut Lang, manicurists used Essie’s Ridge Filling Base Coat ($8) to make sure the nails looked strong and healthy, while opaque nudes ruled at Band of Outsiders, Jason Wu, and rag & bone.

Of course, not everyone went nude! There were sparkles and glitter and yes, even some nail art. The week’s most inspiring manicures, above!

Vera Wang

Creatures of Comfort

Butter London’s lead manicurist, Katie Jane Hughes, painted marbled nails by dropping different shades of polish into a bowl of water, swirling them around, and then dipping each nail into the paint to capture the rings of color.

Rodarte

Rodarte’s fall collection was inspired by childhood nostalgia, so naturally the nails were princess-like, coated in one layer of Sally Hansen’s Lacquer in Pink Dream, an iridescent glitter that’s out next September.

Opening Ceremony

Manicurist Naomi Yasuda, working with Essie, played with negative space at Opening Ceremony. Depending on the outfit, geometric shapes were painted with the brand’s polish ($8) in Aruba Blue, Go Overboard, or Master Plan.

Wes Gordon

The models at Wes Gordon were given “wicked” French manicures by Essie artist Rita Remark. Score the dark burgundy base by layering one coat of polish ($8) in Penny Talk underneath one coat of Bordeaux.